CocoRosie and “Heartache City” at Stary Klasztor: the Casady sisters’ musical world

As talented as they are eccentric, these American artists are favourites of sensitive souls, refined aesthetes and artistic bohemians on both sides of the Atlantic. CocoRosie’s fans include Anthony Hegarty (Anhoni), Devendra Banhart and Jim Jarmusch. An enthusiastic Jarmusch reviewed their new album in his own style: It sounds as though two Billie Holidays, with voices an octave higher, are singing to you while you are on acid in Tokyo in 1926.

On their records, the Casady sisters create a fairy-tale fusion of new folk, opera, hip-hop, old blues and chanson. Their extraordinary sensitivity was shaped both by childhood travels with their mother, an artist of Native American origin, and by their father’s passions, visiting Native American reservations nationwide with him each summer. After their parents’ divorce, the teenage sisters were separated: Sierra moved to Paris to study opera singing at the conservatoire, while Bianca grew up in Brooklyn, New York. They reunited almost ten years later to record the extraordinary debut “La maison de mon reve” in a Montmartre apartment.

The latest album, “Heartache City”, is already the sixth entry in their discography. The sisters recall that, for them, it represents a kind of return to their artistic roots:

As before, we wrote and recorded most of the material ourselves in our studio on a farm in southern France. We needed only a little equipment, some vintage toys and antique instruments. We wanted simple production, limiting ourselves to the essentials, acoustic accompaniment and sounds that gave us so much joy back in the “La Maison” days.

Despite its simple yet unusual instrumentation, “Heartache City” is an exceptionally varied and colourful album. “Forget Me Not” enchants with its beautiful xylophone sound, while “Tim & Tina” reveals the brighter side of the Casady sisters’ souls, contrasting intriguingly with the title track’s darker palette of sound. The celebratory, romantic “Un Beso”, meanwhile, reflects Bianca and Sierra’s time in Buenos Aires. The sisters explain: Our new songs sound less psychedelic, with less of the electronic exploration of the last two records. We wanted a dusty, southern atmosphere with a poetic touch. We ended up in Argentina, where we finished recording and mixing the album with Nicolas Kalwill, whom we had worked with before. The spirit of Buenos Aires mingled with our teenage-romantic-nostalgic mood.

At concerts, extraordinary theatrical make-up and artistic video often enrich the sisters' musical vision. We are delighted that CocoRosie will bring their new material to Poland. “Heartache City” is scheduled for Polish release in April. Bianca Casady & the C.i.A's “Oscar Hocks” will also appear soon.

▶